


The Crow, the Dog, and the Inuzuka.

by Nillegible



Series: Naruto Magic Week Fills [8]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Magic, Alternate Universe - Spirits, Gen, Shisui as a possessed crow
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-07
Updated: 2019-07-07
Packaged: 2020-06-23 23:25:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,042
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19711642
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nillegible/pseuds/Nillegible
Summary: Someone is cursing the trees within Neji's sector and as Lord of the Western Halls, he has enough problems without some sort of cursed plague spreading more death and disease around.It's not his fault that the border between Hatake and Inuzuka lands is almost non-existent, and his familiar (a possessed, one-eyed crow) is no good at keeping watch.Alternate Universe - Living with Spirits.





	The Crow, the Dog, and the Inuzuka.

**Author's Note:**

  * For [blackkat](https://archiveofourown.org/users/blackkat/gifts).



> Hope you like it! This is my last fill for Naruto Magic Week, and I have had so MUCH fun participating, thank you so much to the lovely mods, and everyone who dropped by to see what I've written!
> 
> This is also a gift-fic for Blackkat, who has written possibly half of my favourite fanfic of all time. Thank you for that, Kat!
> 
> Prompt: Any AU.

Neji dismounts from his carriage with a light step, following the red-eyed crow’s lead away from the road. Activating his Sight lets him see the faint tinge of rot and decay that permeates the air, but Shisui leads him unerringly to a tree that looks just a bit worse off than the others in the grove around it, yellowed leaves and brittle branches against the lush greens of the others. Not nearly so far gone as the other trees he’s inspected this morning which were covered with gorging spirit leeches, only two steps from death.

“We’ve caught this one early, Shisui,” he says to the crow when it drops to the ground beside him. If it’s still localized then they might even be able to save it. Neji strains his Sight, and when the branches show nothing more than general poor health, he looks down at the ground, tracing the root system through dirt and thousands of other microorganisms. He has a headache building already, even though he’s only inspected seven trees since sunrise, and the longer he has to use his Byakugan, the fewer he’ll be able to get to before he has to retreat to his manor.

Even so, he cannot waste time searching haphazardly, so Neji methodically follows each branch of the root system, trying to concentrate on the ones that curve back up towards the surface. If anyone was watching, they might think he was insane, walking this oddly twisted pattern within a thirty-foot radius of an ailing tree. He’s covered about half his circuit when he finds it, disturbed soil lower down that had been carefully covered up on the surface.

Neji’s clothes have already been quite ruined by his morning’s tasks so he just drops to his knees, and opens up the bag he’d brought with him. The digging tools are right on top, the basic ritual purification tools more carefully placed below them. He’ll have to dig a bit so he can see clearly before he can decide how to fix this, though.

He digs through about a foot of dirt, again regretting the fact that he hadn’t brought a proper spade. It would have looked frightening, and been very hard to explain away if he was caught, and yet. Neji’s patience is wearing thin.

His Byakugan is not activated but Shisui caws in alarm. He’s back on his feet, trowel out defensively, before something furry leaps and then there are sharp teeth in his forearm, shooting pain from the fine points and a heavy weight against his front and Neji hits the ground on his back hard. A white starburst of pain as his skull strikes the ground and it takes a moment for Neji to understand what’s happening around him.

There’s a warning growl, hot air and saliva around his pinned arm. The trowel is still in his hand but it’s digging against his own left arm, and he can barely see from the bright light of the creature’s chakra blinding his Sight when he activated his byakugan reflexively, and with the heavy weight on top of him, it’s all Neji can do to breathe, let alone attack. “Don’t move, Neji! That’s a ninken, he’ll hurt you,” says Shisui’s voice and Neji rolls his head a bit to the left to see Shisui’s ghostly, one-eyed form. “Inu…zuka?” he asks, surprised. He had thought he was still in some part of Kakashi’s derelict estate. He should have paid better attention.

“So you do know who I am,” says an unfamiliar voice, and Neji’s Sight is open so he can see the bright shape of a man somewhere beyond the dog but he’s dizzy and can smell dog and blood and, he is not okay with this.

“Tell… this mongrel… to release me,” he says, furiously, though the dog just growls again, shifting it’s weight so he’s pinned further.

“Who are you?” the man asks instead, crouching down so Neji can see the shape of his power, bold gold chakra lines. He deactivates his Sight with some effort, to see a young man with messy brown hair and the distinctive red fang markings down the side of his face. He looks confused, brows pinched together and mouth slightly open, before he says, “Hyuuga?”

“Hyuuga Neji,” Neji confirms.

“Well shit. Hinata’s going to be annoyed. Akamaru, you can let go now.” The giant dog backs away and to Neji’s embarrassment, he has to take a few breaths before he can force himself to sit up. He wants to curl into himself, maybe pass out for a few hours until he feels well enough to trek back to his house, but not only is that dangerous (even Shisui can’t keep all malevolent spirits away from him), but there’s still a wary Inuzuka staring at him. One that seems to be on familiar terms with the Hyuuga heir, which means if he’s not careful this incident will reach his uncle.

Neji can’t have that.

His train of thought is derailed by a sudden, sharp barking, and the Inuzuka’s face hardens. “Akamaru says you’re doing something to the tree. There’s something vile in the hole you were digging.”

This insufferable bastard. “I was in the process of removing the blight when your mongrel jumped me,” he says evenly. _You moron_ , Neji doesn’t say.

“On our land?” he doesn’t sound at all convinced. “That’s our responsibility.”

Neji waves him at the satchel. “There’s a license somewhere inside my bag. Which I would have shown you if you hadn’t just attacked without warning like an uncultured brute.” It hurts, getting to his feet. He’s going to be in bed all of tomorrow to recuperate. Still, if he can just finish this tree so he doesn’t have to come back here, he’ll be grateful.

He picks up his trowel and walks back to the hole he was digging. A glare at the giant white ninken gets it to move out of the way, and Shisui drops protectively between Neji and Akamaru. He’s not sure what a possessed crow can do against a ninken, but when he opens his Sight he can see Shisui’s lean form crouching between them. Neji turns his attention to the hole so that they can leave. While he digs, not switching hands this time since his left is slowly oozing blood, he pointedly ignores the Inzuka rummaging in his bag.

Neji stops digging about three inches above the mass of black-purple energy, trying to decide the best way to deal with it without having to touch it. In a better world, he would be able to call up one of three dozen Uchiha to take care of it, since even a novice fire mage would be a competent enough exorcist to banish a minor blight. Instead, he has one Uchiha spirit who can summon cleansing fire about as well as he can send himself on to the afterlife, which is to say: not at all.

“Inuzuka, could you bring me the bag?” he asks. Half his tools are spread out on the grass so Neji adds, “And bring the silver nails and the thermos.”

If he poured the rest of his holy water over the blight and lit a bluestone salt-fire, it would probably be neutralized enough for him to dig it out. While he rummages inside the bag (now hopelessly disorganized) to find some matches, char cloth, and his bottle of bluestone salt, the ninken - Akamaru - sticks his snout into the hole. His snout is far shorter than Neji's arm, and he'd had to stretch near the end, but he still pushes the dog away. "Are you as foolish as you look? Inuzuka, control your animal. That's a thirty-year tree it's sapping, and plants have high natural defenses against death and decay. It would lay your dog out for weeks if it doesn't kill him outright, and god knows where else it could spread to with a mobile host.” The man whistles and Akamaru withdraws to a safe five feet away, though the dog's eyes are focussing on Neji's every move. So an Inuzuka dog doesn't think he can do his duty? Neji doesn’t care, almost no one does, and yet he manages fine.

He finds a shallow quartz dish he doesn't remember packing and eyes it contemplatively. That would work far better than charcloth wrapped salt, but only if he also had some other things... "Have you removed a small bottle of kerosene?" he asks, looking up. "And matches?" On second thought... the Inuzuka has removed everything that could be used to defend himself. Had he thought he'd _hit him_ with the thermos? With that bizarre thought, Neji accepts the kerosene and pours half into the quartz dish. Adds a generous amount of bluestone salt, and as an afterthought adds some sea-salt and resin. He sprinkles half of the remaining holy water down the hole, and carefully sets the dish into the moist earth. He takes out a roll of silver netting and places it by the open hole and considers the timing. "Would you drop the match?" he asks, looking up.

"Why can't you?"

"I'd have to set a slow-burning wick and light that to have time to cover it. You'd save me a few minutes."

The Inuzuka looks at his ninken, who whuff-growl-says something, and then he kneels down and takes the matchbox.

"Drop it straight down and then move back," Neji warns, the net ready in his hands. Inuzuka nods, strikes the match, and lets go. Neji flicks the netting closed and instantly there's a flash of blue-green flames, lighting up the hole and turning the net red-hot but not spilling out. It lasts less than fifteen seconds, and then Neji moves the netting aside with one of the nails, peering back inside with his byakugan activated. Much better. Even so, he pulls on a glove and lays out a waxed cloth before he begins to dig up the blighted soil.

It smells vile, like rot and death, but it's _tolerable_. Apparently not so to the Inuzuka or his nin-ken because he steps back, choking and Akamaru whines and retreats to the treeline.

"What the hell is that?" he sputters. Neji, who has removed half of the cursed material but can't quite reach the rest, considers. "Possibly a dead rabbit. Perhaps two? Killing something is the easiest way to attract a curse and I've seen two dozen this week. I doubt anyone could have gotten hold of that many cats in such a short time. I regret to ask you this, but do you have a shovel that I can borrow? I can't quite reach the rest," and he's trying, arm in the ground about as far as he can reach, ear brushing the grass.

"You're joking."

Neji pulls out. "About which?"

"Burying things is supposed to lay them to rest."

"Clearly you’re misinformed. A shovel, if you please?" Shooting him a look, the Inuzuka walks away. "I'll get it, but Akamaru will be keeping an eye on you. And if you hurt him, I'll tell Hiashi-san!"

So perhaps the fool did know something about how the Hyuuga clan works, Neji thinks, watching him leave. And as though Neji could hurt a ninken. Though technically, he probably could. If he wasn't so beat up and in pain, he might be able to hold his own for a few minutes.

* * *

Kiba finds a first aid kit and water bottles to take back with the shovel, jogging because the Hyuuga was on the furthest edge of the clan-lands, near the Hatake border. He's a bit worried about leaving Akamaru outnumbered, but the crow hadn't done much but watch Neji's back, and honestly, the Hyuuga didn't look so great. (But even dirty and exhausted and just _pissed off_ , the Hyuuga did look, um. _Impressive_. Kiba had gotten quite an excellent view of the other man's ass as he dug in the ground, and he's never been so happy _not_ to be in his sister's presence. Hana would have called him out instantly. Akamaru had only stuck out his tongue.

The Hyuuga is slumped in on himself when Kiba finds them, the crow hopping about nervously. "Here," he says, dropping the first aid kit beside the other man, and heading for the hole himself. As he'd thought, they'll need to widen it. He's about to start on that when Neji says, "What are you doing?"

"You should clean your arm and wrap it. Your trowel wasn’t rusted, but cuts can still get infected."

Pale eyes narrow at him. "May I know why you’ve suddenly decided I require your help?"

"You look pathetic enough for me to feel sorry for you. Just let me do this."

“No,” he says, struggling to his feet and holding out his hand for the shovel. “I know you think I’m just digging a hole, but I need to make sure that every last bit of the blight is gone. If your tree succumbs, it will be _far_ messier to eradicate.”

Kiba frowns at him. “I’ll just widen the opening for you a little, you can deal with the cursed bits. Please sit before you _fall_.” The man narrows his eyes, but his crow squawks at him, and he sits down heavily.

“Thank you,” he offers quietly, and it sounds sincere, though a bit grudging.

“I should be thanking you,” he offers, willing to meet the Hyuuga halfway. “I don’t know much, but I can tell this could have been nasty if you hadn’t caught it.”

The other man just nods. “I didn’t mean to trespass. I thought I was still on Kakashi’s clan lands. Had to clear up six trees over there, just went ahead to the next one without checking.”

“Exactly the same?” asks Kiba, and the other man shrugs one-sided. Kiba pauses in his digging, worried about what Neji had just said. “You mean there could be more.”

Neji looks confused. “There are almost definitely more. I was going to ask Lady Inuzuka for permission tomorrow before I started clearing up the ones on your land.”

Kiba goes back to breaking up the compacted earth. “So you’ll be here tomorrow?”

“I will try; I have to hold court tomorrow morning. I’ll be here if I can, or it will have to be the day after.”

True to his word, Kiba stops after widening the hole, and Neji gets back on his knees to scoop out the last of the cursed earth. Kiba watches as he ties the waxed cloth into a neat bundle, and then places it carefully into his own bag.

Neji doesn’t… actually look all that great when he rises to leave. “Is that…the way you need to go?” Kiba asks when the man turns in the direction opposite the houses and the main road.

“I was following one of the Hatake dirt roads, my chaise should be waiting for me there.”

“Do you want me to walk you there?” he asks, worried.

“No, I’ll be fine,” Neji insists, and starts walking away. Kiba watches his slow, careful gait - he’s clearly in more pain than he wants to show - and then jogs the few steps separating them. He offers Neji his arm. “I’ll walk you,” he says, and this time it’s not a question. The pale eyes regard him for a long moment, and then Neji carefully takes his arm.

He would cheer for finally getting through to him, but from the careful way Neji leans his weight against him, the way he sags the further they walk, Kiba thinks pure exhaustion might have led the man to accept help. His hearing has always bordered on unnaturally sensitive, so he can hear Neji’s labored breathing though it’s clear the man is attempting to hide it.

“Why are you doing this alone?” he asks, finally. The Hyuuga were a weird bunch but he can’t imagine why they would let such a young man – he can’t be more than a year older than Kiba – do something this dangerous without back-up.

“It’s my responsibility,” says Neji firmly, in a tone that suggested that further probing would not be welcome.

It kind of makes sense that Hyuuga Neji hadn’t noticed the boundary between Hatake and Inuzuka land. It’s obvious to Kiba where it is because he can smell it but _visually_ there’s nothing to differentiate the two. He tells Neji this, hoping to let him know there’ll be no hard feelings for the other man’s trespassing but gets an oddly disgusted look instead.

“Don’t tell me that you _-ugh,“_ he says, leaning away from him and Kiba blinks in surprise.

“We what?”

“You- _never mind_.”

It takes him a few moments to figure out what Neji’s insinuating and then he laughs, head tipped back and Akamaru is laughing too, and he can’t explain himself to the affronted Hyuuga because he can barely breathe.

When he finally has control of himself, he says, “ _That’s_ not what my mum and Hana do. They just run the perimeter once a month with the dogs, touching some of the oldest trees as they pass. It’s significant enough to notice. On that side-” he nods towards the other boundary - ”you can smell Hatake even though they haven’t been by for more than a decade.

Kiba laughs again, the absurdity of the Hyuuga’s assumption and the embarrassed color to his cheeks now are just hilarious. “Would you like me to walk you the rest of the way?” he asks, a bit worried because this _is_ the border to his clan lands.

“It’s fine,” says Neji, walking away without even turning around. “Tell your mother that I’ll be over soon.” With a half-wave, Neji is out of sight. His crow stares fixedly at Kiba and Akamaru until the sound of Neji’s footsteps in the fallen leaves grows indistinct, and then flies away with a loud caw that sounds like a warning.

Akamaru barks back and Kiba rests his hand against Akamaru’s neck to calm him. They need to get home and talk to his mom, soon.

(It doesn’t make sense for him to keep wondering if Hyuuga Neji made it home safely. God, he really hopes Hana’s not home when he gets back. Akamaru is definitely amused.)

**Author's Note:**

> This is the first work in Hitsuzen, as you can see, which has a really sprawling storyline that I actually have an outline for, for a change; but I'm not sure if/when I'll complete the next part without a deadline!


End file.
